Essar to invest Rs 1,200cr in 'The Mobile Store'

Business conglomerate Essar Group will invest Rs 1,200 crore over the next three years in its telecom retail venture and expects to earn a revenue of Rs 3,000 crore.

"We will invest Rs 1,200 crore over the next three years to set up 2,500 'The MobileStore' outlets across the country," Rajiv Agarwal, CEO, Essar Telecom Retail told PTI.

The company would also increase its head count to 10,000 in the next three years from the current 1,200.

With its aggressive expansion plans, the company aims to achieve a top line of Rs 3,000 crore in the next three years, he added.

The multi-service outlets, The MobileStore, would offer handsets, mobile accessories, new connections, value-added services, after-sales support and bill payment facilities. The company has already opened about 250 such outlets across the country.

"The country's handset market stands at Rs 35,000 crore and is growing at an annual rate of 60%. Of this huge market, we expect to have 10-15% market share," Agarwal said.

"We are also looking at opening up of 4,000 touch points in the form of stores, kiosks and shop-in-shops," he added.

The stores would be set up in three formats - large, medium and compact, besides shop-in-shops in malls and large retail outlets, he said, adding the outlets would also offer electronic products such as digital cameras, iPods and gaming devices.